Help needed. I’m not a regular car modeler but decided to try my hand with a Fujimi Mini Cooper. I primed the car body with rattle can primer and then sprayed home brew British green made with Tamiya gloss colors - so far so good and after 24 hours sprayed a couple coats of Tamiya clear X-22. Looks great to my eye. I let this dry 48 hours and I mask the entire body using Tamiya masking tape in order to spray the fenders flat black. When I removed the tape the entire paint finish is mottled. It’s smooth to the touch but the finish is all mottled. Is there a way to salvage this mess? Thanks for any advise.

It's smooth to the touch than another clear coat will solve that. However, the time it takes for that to cure, I do not have an answer. I assume that was the problem to begin with.

Thanks for the suggestion and I think that did the trick. Letting this coat set up and will spray another coat for good measure.

It seems indeed that some X22 went with your tape or it might be some glue residue from the tape. Try first to remove the spots with turpentine or other weak solvent that shouldn't bother your acrylic coat. If doesn't work, try a little smoothing sanding and another clear coat.

Gabriel

Chris,
Tamiya Gloss paints do take somewhat longer to dry and cure. The length of time does vary with room temp & humidity levels.

When I use Tamiya tape, which is the only tape I use for masking, I de-tack it by applying it to the back of my hand a few times.

If the tape pulled off some of the X-22, then it wasn't completely cured. If it was just the clear coat that had the issues, a few wet coats as you found out will solve the problem.

Joel